Sleeping Positions
by ninjanervana
Summary: All of the Avengers have particular ways they like to sleep. Whether it was during their life before the Avengers, when they sleep in S.H.I.E.L.D facilities or when they sleep in Stark Towers, they tend to sleep in the same position no matter what. It's just force of habit for them. Here's how I think they like to sleep.


So this morning I was woken up at 6 in the morning to say good-bye to some family that was leaving. When I went back to bed, I wondered for some odd reason what positions the Avengers would sleep in. I realize that's the weirdest thought I've ever had before falling asleep. But now here we are with my long-ish drabble describing how I think the Avengers sleep. Remember I do not own anything

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All of the Avengers have particular ways they like to sleep. Whether it was during their life before the Avengers, when they sleep in S.H.I.E.L.D facilities or when they sleep in Stark Towers, they tend to sleep in the same position no matter what. It's just force of habit for them.

Steve and Bruce like to sleep in the fetal position. Before Steve was administered the super solider serum, he was a scrawny twig who was constantly picked on by bullies. If his best friend, Bucky, wasn't around to help him out, he would basically get his ass handed to him during a fight. Whenever he got caught in a fight without back-up, he would try valiantly to defend himself. Failing at that unfortunately, Steve would end up on the floor in the fetal position, attempting to protect his face and internal organs as much as possible. He had enough medical issues as it was; the last thing he needed was broken ribs or a punctured lung. Even after he was given the super solider serum and could protect himself against almost everything, he still slept in the fetal position. In his eyes, he wasn't a superhero; he still felt like the same scrawny kid from Brooklyn who got picked on.

Bruce had somewhat similar reasons for sleeping in the fetal position. While he wasn't picked on by bullies, he was bullied in his home, by his father. His mother tried her best to protect him, always guarding her with his body, pushing him into his bedroom, doing whatever it took to protect her son from her husband's drunken wrath. While it worked a lot, his mother wasn't always fast enough to protect him from his father's blows. When his father came at him, Bruce ended up on the floor, curled into himself, hoping his dad would go away, that all the madness would stop. On the nights when his mother locked him in his room to protect him, Bruce would lay curled up on his bed, his hands over his ears as he tried to block out the sounds of his father's shouting and his mother's cries. Years later, he still sleeps in the same position, the sounds of his childhood still haunting him.

Before Pepper became Tony's assistant, he usually slept at his worktable in the lab. He had no reason to go upstairs to his empty bed, so he usually worked until he fell asleep with his screwdriver in hand. After Pepper became his assistant, she tried to persuade him to spend more nights sleeping in his bed instead of on his worktable. She knew it wasn't healthy for Tony to spend so many nights sleeping in his lab. After a lot of begging and threatening she finally had Tony sleeping somewhat regularly in his bed, getting him to spend a maximum of three nights a week sleeping in his lab. When Tony slept in his bed, he slept sprawled out on his back, arms and legs stretching in every direction. Pepper wasn't surprised so many of Tony's "friends" left in the middle of the night; there was barely any room for them to sleep next to Tony.

Once Tony and Pepper started dating, his sleeping habits got progressively better as he spent six nights a week sleeping in his bed. He wouldn't crawl into bed until way after midnight, but he wouldn't pass up the opportunity to sleep next to his favorite person. He loved the way she looked when she slept in his bed, her strawberry blonde hair spread across the pillows, the sheets wrapped around her. He would always spend a moment in the doorway, just watching her before crawling into bed with her. On the nights he was feeling particularly affectionate and managed to reach his bedroom at the same time as Pepper, he would sit her on the bed as he kneeled in front of her, slip her stilettos off, and gently massage her feet, smirking as he listened to her sighs of appreciation. Tony still slept on his back with Pepper's head resting on his chest, but his limbs were no longer sprawled out as he wanted her as close as possible, one of his arms wrapped around her shoulders to hold her against him.

Clint and Natasha slept in standard assassin position before they met each other: sleep on your side facing the door, blanket only up to your waist, hand under the pillow holding tightly to a gun. They were both light sleepers; there probably wasn't anyone who could sneak up on them while they slept, but they wouldn't be good assassins if they weren't prepared for a sudden attack. After spending years as partners, going on countless missions, they knew it was only a matter of time before they ended up in bed together. They were both plagued by nightmares, things they'd seen, things they'd done, the ledger they were so desperately trying to clean; having the one person you trusted with your life by your side when you woke up made the nightmares a bit easier to deal with.

Clint and Natasha always slept facing each other. On the rare occasion that anyone actually saw them sleeping together, they would claim they slept that way to protect each other's backs. One person would be able to watch the door while the other watched the wall of windows. Truthfully, it was easier to chase nightmares away when you had someone beside you, someone you trusted. They slept with their bodies flush against each other's, every inch of available skin pressing against one another. Natasha slept with her head tucked underneath Clint's chin as she wrapped an arm around his torso. Both of them still slept with a hand beneath their pillow, fingers wrapped around their guns, but they were more relaxed together, not that anyone would have noticed.

Thor's sleeping position in Asgard was similar to Tony's. Thor preferred to sleep on his stomach sprawled out on his bed, usually with an arm or a leg dangling off the bed. He usually slept on the right side of the bed, always making sure there was room for someone else. Whenever Loki had nightmares as a child, he would sneak into Thor's bed and sleep on the left side. After Thor began sharing a bed with Jane, he changed his sleeping position to something a bit more comfortable for Jane. Now Thor would sleep on his left side, his larger body curled around Jane's petite frame as her back pressed against his chest. His back faced the doorway, guarding her in case they were suddenly attacked. His right arm wrapped around her waist protectively, still free to summon his hammer if needed. He loved being able to bury his face in her soft hair, to be able to feel the silky strands against his face and smell the vanilla scent that always linger on her skin; it was more soothing than any lullaby could have been.

On occasion the Avengers will all fall asleep in the living room after a movie marathon or a "team-building" evening. Jane would fall asleep on Thor's lap, her head resting on his shoulder while Thor's arms wrapped around her waist, his head lolling against the back of the couch. Tony would be stretched out on another couch with Pepper sleeping on top of him, her head resting above his heart, his arms around her. Steve and Bruce would fall asleep on opposite ends of the couch, their large bodies curled as much as possible to avoid kicking the other accidently. Clint and Natasha would be leaned against each other, Clint's arm around her shoulder to pull her closer. Natasha's legs would be draped over his as she leaned against his side, her arm around his torso.

None of them have ever mentioned it, but they always get the best night's rest when they all sleep in the living room, simultaneously comforting and being comforted by their teammates' presence. Phil walked in on them all sleeping in the living room one morning, smiling slightly at the sight of Earth's mightiest heroes all snuggled up like a bunch of children. There are only two pictures of that morning: one sitting on Agent Coulson's desk as a reminder that the Avengers aren't always a pain in the ass and the other hanging in the living room of Stark Towers, reminding everyone that this is home and they are family.

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Reviews please!


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